Addressing Controversy In Communities

In this episode, “Addressing Controversy in Communities,” Elevate Youth Programming sat down with Lashantynia Clayton, Ginger Harris, and Zoe P. Schescke to discuss youth engagement and community misinformation. Adolescent Pregnancy Prevention (APP) provides youth with timely, evidenced-based information proven to delay sexual activity, increase condom and contraceptive use for sexually active youth, or reduce pregnancy and sexually transmitted infections among youth. Despite data suggesting evidence-based sexual health is a key, effective strategy used to address pregnancy prevention, community controversy and misinformation have impacted APP implementation across the nation. Many programs have experienced disruptions in implementation because of community backlash ranging from reduced access to youth needing services to suspended instructional delivery. In this episode, we spoke with current APP grantees about challenges and successes preventing and addressing misinformation in communities.